HB173 and HB296 represent common sense and humane visitation policies. Strong connections to the outside world are demonstrably vital to reentry success. HB1041 is another obvious gain for everyone concerned, returning citizens, their loved ones, and tax paying citizens of the Commonwealth. HB553 is another no brainer that deserves full support.

When did our state government decide that they do not have to follow our Constitution of the United States of America? The 2nd Amendment is an individual right under the Constitution that states clearly that it shall not be infringed on which in simple terms means that no government official or group has the ability to take a person's right to keep and bear arms in the United States of America. This Amendment was so important to our forefathers that it is the second thing they wrote to establish that the government does not have the ability to take your right to defend yourself against all enemies and this includes a tyrannical state government that doesn't understand plain text that our country was founded on. It doesn't matter what others opinions or feelings on the subject of the right to bear arms is because it is my right and not their's that we are talking about at this time. As a society of individuals in our country that have never agreed on things of this nature since the invention of the modern firearm we have to look no farther than our own Constitution to see that this is not a collective right of certain people that agree or disagree with the principle of firearms but infact a Constitutional right of an individual to determine there views of their personal right to bear arms. With the world in the state it is in at our present time this Constitutional right is needed more then ever because we are facing people that think that the can completely ignore the Constitution and its not even on a national level but a state level. This is also a truly sad moment of our state that is the founding place for our country as it exists from the time that we settled in this new land of an unknown world at the time but to disrespect our founding Document that started it all on top of it is the worst thing that could happen in our state for these elected officials to look at the Bill of Rights and say to themselves that those Amendment are not worth following because I have a different opinion, belief or feeling on that Amendment that I am personally going to take the individual right of every person in Virginia just because I don't want to follow these Amendments as they are written. Do you understand how this is being a tyrannical government just like the British were when they were trying to control the entire population at the time that we had the Revolution in this great land to start this great country. When people say that the 2nd Amendment is dated and need to be revised but can see the actual beauty in how our forefathers predicted that this Amendment would be necessary throughout time to even to the year 2026 were we have a government that is looking at this exact Amendment and saying no we don't have to follow that anymore because we have all these people that don't like the fact that a free person of the United States of America can purchase anything that has to do with their ability to not only protect themselves in self defense but also to protect themselves from the tyrannical government that is before us today. I'm sorry but as a person that has no affiliation to a political party or any other organization on this subject in our country I believe in our Constitution and the Amendments that were written in the Bill of Rights to protect myself, my family and my friends from people that think that they know what is best for everyone in our country on the basis that they either think they are smarter, richer or elected.

Good Morning, the House Of Delegates, I am a member of the Valley Justice Coalition and we support these four (4) bills : HB173, HB296, HB533 and HB1041. These bills are well needed in the Department of Correction for the detained individuals and families in order to maintain a productive re entry to the communities. Please, vote yes. Thank you. Ms Stover

As a retired educator and member of the Valley Justice Coalition, I strongly support this bill. Nothing can improve reentry success like an education. Please vote Yes for HB1041.

On behalf of Survivors for Justice Reform (S4JR), a survivor-led coalition grounded in the belief that justice is not found in the deprivation of human potential, but in its cultivation, are in strong support of HB1041. We urge the Committee to advance HB1041 because access to literacy and higher education is one of the most effective ways to reduce harm, strengthen families, and improve public safety. Education is a human right that should not end at the prison gates. HB1041 takes meaningful steps to modernize and expand educational access by ensuring functional literacy programming, creating a Prison Education Task Force to improve consistency and quality across facilities, and investing in educators through competitive compensation. These are practical, evidence-based reforms that support rehabilitation and successful reentry. As survivors, we understand that when an incarcerated person gains education, entire families benefit. Education helps interrupt intergenerational cycles of harm, supports parents in showing their children what growth and accountability can look like, and increases the likelihood of stability after release. Research consistently finds that participation in correctional education is associated with significantly lower recidivism, often cited around 43% lower odds, which means safer communities and fewer people harmed in the future. Survivors are not a monolith, and many of us want a system that returns people to our communities more capable, more grounded, and more prepared to contribute. True public safety is built through empowerment, not stagnation. For these reasons, we respectfully urge you to support HB1041.